Combined top clamp and end grip for slicing machines



J. FOLK 1,905,457

COMBINED TOP CLAMP AND END GRIP FOR SLICING MACHINES April 25, 1933.

Filed April 20, 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet l April 25, 1933. v J. FOLK 1,905,457

' COMBINED TOP CLAMP AND END GRIP FOR SLICING MACHINES Filed April 20. 1927 s Sheets-Sheet 5 Java r .9 WI V a Patented Apr. 25, 1933 JOSEPH FOLK, OF LA FORTE, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR TO U. S. SILICING MAGHINECOMPANY, OF LA FORTE, INDIANA, A CORPORATION OF IN DIANA COMBINED TOP GLAIVIP AND END GRIP FOR SLICING MACHINES Application filed April 20, 1927. Serial No. 185,093.

This invention relates to mechanism for holding the work to be sliced by a slicing machine and has for its object the provision of a combined top clamp and end grip by means of which the work may be held by the top clamp during the major portion of the slicing operation and by the end grip to Complete the slicing operation of a piece of material to the last salable slice.

A further object is to provide a work holder for slicing machines which shall be of improved construction and operation. Other objects will appear from the following description.

The invention is exemplified in the combination and arrangement of parts shown in the accompanying drawings and described in the following specification, and it is more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a slicing machine showing one embodiment of the present invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the work holder shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section substantially on line 33 of Fig. 2;

Fig. l is a section substantially on line 41- 1 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a section substantially on line 55, of Fig. 1.

The invention is illustrated in the drawings as applied to a slicing machine having a base provided with a reciprocating table 11 whlch travels on ways 12. A ro-' tary slicing knife 13 is disposed adjacent the path of the table 11 and the table and knife are operated by a hand Wheel 14, all of well known construction. A work support or top plate 15 is carried by the reciprocating table 11 and is intermittently fed forward toward the cutting plane of the knife 13 by feeding mechanism 16 which may be of any approved construction.

At the side of the work supporting table 15 opposite the operators position is an uprightor post 16 rigidly mounted on the table 15. A sleeve 17 is slidably mounted on the post 16 and is arranged to bear upon the surface of said post at the top and bottom of the sleeve but maybe recessed between the ends thereof to provide clearance, indicated at 18 in Fig. 2 of the drawings. A bracket 19 extends laterally from the sleeve 17 and carries a meat end grip 20. The end grip illustrated in the drawings may be of the form shown in Patent #1,356,165, granted October 18, 1920, and a detailed description of this end grip is not necessary here. Any approved form of meat end grip may be employed but the frame of the grip is carried entirely on the bracket 19, as illustrated in the drawings. Secured to the lower face of the meat end grip is a U- plate 21 having spaced rows of teeth 22 which may be used for clamping material on the top plate 15 in the manner of a top grip, such as that illustrated in the co-pending application of Hendrik Stukart, Serial No. 183,381 filed April 13, 1927 now Patent No. 1,801,250.. A manipulating arm or handle 23 extends rearwardly from the upper portion of the sleeve 17 and is bifurcatedat its rear end to straddle a post 2 1 which projects upwardly from the top plate 15 at a point spaced rearwardly from the post 16. It will be apparent that thepost 24: will hold the sleeve 17 against rotation about the post 16 while permitting vertical movement of the sleeve and parts supported thereon. The upper and lower separated by a gap 25 which registers with the bracket 19 and also with the end of the arm 23 so that the separated portions of the sleeve are held in fixed relation to each other.

A bridge or yoke 26 may be provided for connecting the upper and lower portions of the sleeve at the side opposite the arm 23. A'

clutch plate 27 is located in the gap 25 and is provided with a perforation therethrough portions of the sleeve 17 are for receiving the post 16. The front side of the clutch plate 27 rests on a support 28 so that the weight of the plate tends to cant the rear side thereof downwardly into position to grip the post 16. A spring-held pin 29 bears on the plate 27 in the rear of the abutment 28 and prevents chattering of the plate between the top and bottom of the gap 25. A handle bar 30 is secured to the rear side of the plate 27 and is position-ed in a groove in the lower face of the manipulating arm 23. A spring 31 presses the handle bar 30 downwardly and assists in holding the plate 27 in its gripping position upon the arm 16 to resist upward movement of the sleeve along the arm. It will be apparent that upward pressure on the lever 30 will first release the clutch plate 27 and then raise the sleeve 17 and the parts attached thereto. The end grip 20 may thus be lifted to a suflicient height to permitmaterial to be inserted beneath the top grip 22 and in this way, the top grip may be employed for clamping material on the support 15. Since the combined top grip and meat end grip are supported entirely on the post 16, there would be nothing at the operators side of the plate 15 to inter fere with free movement of the material into and out of position beneath the grip 21.

When the device is used as a meat end grip, the front face will be advanced to the position shown in 5 so that the gripping tines will be located just back of the cutting plane of the knife 13. The table 15 is shown at the forward limit of its movementin this figure. When the device is used as a top grip, however, itis desirable to shift the device rearwardly so thatboth rows of teeth 22 will be locked over the plate 15 and also to prevent interference between the up per portion of the gripper and the guard 82 for the slicing knife when the gripper is raised and the table reciprocated. In order to move the gripper rearwardly, the post 16 is shifted. It will be seen from Fig. 4 that the post 16 is mounted eccentrically on the base 34 which is rotatably supported in a socket 35 carried by the edge of the plate 15. A spring detent 36 is arranged to engage diametrically opposite depressions 37 in the bass 34 to hold the base in two different positions of adjustment. In one of these positions, the post 16 will be located in its foremost position, as indicated in full lines in Fig. 4, and in the other position of adjustment, the post 16 will be in its rearmost position, as indicated in broken lines. A pin 38 is secured to the top of the post for rotating the post and shifting its position back and forth. A key 89 is secured to the upper portion of the post 16 in position to register with a keyway 4,0 in the sleeve 17 when the base 34 is shifted to bring the post 16 in its rearmost position. This will permit the gripper to be lifted to bring the top grip into operation. When the post 16 is in its forward position, however, the key 39 will be out of registration with the keyway 40 so that the gripper cannotbe lifted. This prevents danger of raising the gripper while in its forward position. If it were 1 possible to raise the gripper in this position and the reciprocating table were moved rearwardly while the gripper is up, the top portion of the gripper would interfere with the guard 32. It will be seen that the arrangement provides means for supporting an end grip on a top plate in which there are no posts or uprights of any kind at the side of the top plate adjacent the operator. The top grip is operated by moving the parts supported by the sleeve 17 downwardly along the post 16 and the momentum of the moving parts materially assists in securing a firm engagement with the work. The weight of the end grip, in this way, assists in securing a firm clamping action of the top. grip. The

end grip is permanently mounted on the machine so that it is always available for use.

This is a moreconvenient arrangement than that in which the end grip is removed during slicing with the top grip. It has been found that, in many instances, the butcher does not make full use of his meat end grip where it is necessary for him to remove the end grip in order to use the top grip and replace the end grip when needed. Since the end grip is permanently connected with the machine, i will not become lost or injured from lack of proper attention while removed from the machine.

I claim 1. In a slicing machine, a slicing knife, a work holder for presenting material to said knife, said work holder comprising a support, an upright post at one side of said support, a-sleeve mounted on said post, a gripper fixed to said sleeve and projecting across said support and having a front face substantially parallel to the cutting plane of said knife, means for engaging the rear face of a piece of material to be sliced and securing said face to the front face of said gripper, said gripper being supported by said sleeve and post, and means connected with said sleeve for preventing horizontal rotation of said gripper about said post. h i

2. A slicing machine having a slicing knife, a work support for presenting material to said knife, an upright mounted at one side of said work support, a sleeve slidably mounted on said upright, a releasable clutch for holding said sleeve against upward movement on said upright, a gripper fixed to said sleeve and projecting laterally therefrom across said work support, said gripper having a clamp at the bottom face thereof for clamping material on said work support, means for holding material against the front face of said gripper, and means for holding said gripper against horizontal rotation about said upright, said upright being shiftable toward and from the cutting plane of said knife relative to said work support.

3. In a slicing machine, a slicing knife, a work support for presenting material to said knife, and a gripper mounted adjacent the edge of said work support nearest the cutting plane of said knife, said gripper having an upright face substantially parallel to the cutting plane of said knife, means for securing a piece of material to said upright face, and a clamp carried by the lower face of said gripper for clamping material between said grip, er and said work support, said gripper being adjustable relative to said work support toward and from the cutting plane of said knife.

l. In a slicing machine, a slicing knife, a work support for presenting material to said knife, an upright mounted on said work support, a sleeve slidably mounted on said upright, a gripper secured to said sleeve and projecting over said work support, said gripper having its front face substantially parallel to the cutting plane of said knife and Liaving means for securing material to said front face, a clamping bar carried by the lower face of said gripper for clamping material between said gripper and said work support, a releasable clutch for holding said gripper against upward movement on said upright, means for shifting said upright toward and from the cutting plane of said knife, and means for preventing upward movement of said sleeve and gripper when said upright is in one position of adjustment.

5. In a slicing machine, a slicing knife, a work support for material to be sliced, an

upright at one side of said work support, an

eccentric on which said upright is mounted, said eccentric being shiftable to move said upright toward and from said slicing knife, means for holding said eccentric in different ositions of ad'ustment a 'ri er mounted l 7 b on said upright, and means carried by said gripper for holding material to be sliced.

6. In a slicing machine, a slicing knife, a work support, an upright mounted on said work support, a sleeve slidably mounted on said upright, a gripper secured to said sleeve and projecting across said support in a direction substantially parallel to the cutting plane of said slicing knife, a manipulating arm extending rearwardly from said sleeve, an upright for engaging said manipulating arm to hold said sleeve against horizontal rotation, means for shifting said first-named upright toward and from the cutting plane of said knife, and a releasable clutch for holding said sleeve against upward movement on said uprights.

7. In a slicing machine, a slicing knife, a work support for presenting material to said knife, an upright mounted at one side of said work support, a sleeve slidably mounted on said upright, an eccentric for shifting said gripper having separately operating grip-.

ping devices thereon for use in the different positions of adjustment of said upright.

8. A slicing machine comprising a slicing knife, a work support for material to be sliced, a gripper having a clampingbar on the lower face thereof for clamping material, on said work support, means on the front face of said gripper for holding material independently of said clamping bar, a support for said gripper movable toward and from the cutting plane of said slicing knife for shifting said gripper toward and from said cutting plane, and means for preventing upward movement of said gripper when it is in its position of adjustment nearest the cutting plane of said slicing knife.

9. A slicing machine comprising a slicing knife, a support for material to be sliced, an upright carried by said support, adjacent one edge thereof, a sleeve slidably mounted on said upright, a combined top and end grip fixed to said sleeve and projecting across said support, a clutch for holdingsaid sleeve against upward movement on said upright and for preventing the weight of the grip from moving said sleeve downwardly, a manipulating arm secured to saidsleeve and extending rearwardly therefrom in a direction substantially normal to the cutting plane of said knife, and means connected with said manipulating arm for releasing said clutch, said clutch permitting downward movement of said sleeve when downwardpressure is applied to said grip.

10. A slicing machine comprising a slicing knife, a work support for material to be sliced, an upright mounted on said work support adjacent the edge thereof opposite the operators position, a sleeve slidably mounted on said upright, a combined top and end grip fixed to said sleeve and projecting therefrom toward the operators side of said work support substantially parallel to the cutting plane of said knife, said combined top and end grip being supported solely by said sleeve, and a manipulating arm for said top and end grip secured to said sleeve and projecting rearwardly therefrom along the side of said support away from the operators position.

11. In a slicing machine, a slicing knife, a

work support for material to be sliced, an

upright mounted on said work support at the edge thereof opposite the operators posi tion, a sleeve slidaloly mounted on said upright, a combined top and end grip projects ing from said sleeve substantially parallel to the cutting plane of said knife and leaving the space between the lower edge thereof and said support unobstructed at the operators side of said support, a clutch connected with said sleeve for holding said sleeve against upward movement on said support, a'manipulating arm extending rearwardly from said sleeve, a lever for releasing said clutch disposed beneath said manipuating arm, and a post mounted on said work support and engaging said vmanipulating arm to hold said sleeve against horizontal rotation upon said upright.

12. A slicing machine comprising a slicing knife, a work support for material to be sliced, a gripper having a clamping bar on the lower face thereof for clamping material on said work support, means on the face of said gripper adjacent the slicing knife for holding material independently of said clamping bar, a support for said gripper movable toward and from the cutting plane of said slicing knife for shifting said gripper toward and away from said cutting plane, means for preventing upward movement of said gripper when it is in its position of ad justment nearest the cutting plane of said slicing knife, and a friction clutch for holding said gripper in various positions of ad justment on the support for said gripper and adapted to prevent upward movement of said gripper but permitting downward movement thereof when pressure is applied thereto.

13. In a slicing machine, the combination with a slicing knife, of a substance support movable past the cutting edge of said knife in a path substantially'parallel to the cutting plane of said knife, a feed pi ate mounted on said support for movement toward and from the cutting plane of said knife, a clamping member on said plate and extending over said clamping plate adjacent the edge thereof which lies adjacent thecutting plane of the knife, said feed member having a surface thereon facing toward the cutting plane of said knife and provided with means for holding a substance against said portion, substance-engaging means on the underside of said clamping member facing said plate for holding a substance against said plate as it is fed toward the cutting plane of said knife, and means for moving said clamping member from a position in which the same is arranged substantially entirely to the rear of the edge of said plate which lies adjacent said cutting plane to a position between said edge and said cutting plane.

14. A slicing machine comprising a main substance support for supporting the substance to be sliced, an auxiliary substance support slidahly mounted on said main support for movement toward and from the edge thereof at which the slices aresevered from a substance on said main supportand said auxiliary support, a clamping inemh'er mount ed on said auxiliary support having a substance-engaging portion thereon facing said auxiliary support and another substance-engaging portion facing in a direction toward the cutting plane of the knife of the said slicing machine, and means for moving said clamping member from a position in which 

